Agricultural land use in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Agricultural land use was 16.17 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
16.17 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.0%
World rank
56th
of 227 countries
All-time high
16.39 million hectares
in 2008
All-time low
10.00 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in Zimbabwe, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Zimbabwe recorded 16.17 million hectares for agricultural land use in 2023.
The figure is down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in Zimbabwe peaked at 16.39 million hectares in 2008 and was at its lowest, 10.00 million hectares, in 1961.
Zimbabwe ranks 56th of 227 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 10.00 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 10.07 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 10.17 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1964 | 10.24 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 10.32 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1966 | 10.33 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1967 | 10.43 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1968 | 10.49 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1969 | 10.61 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 10.71 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1971 | 10.83 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1972 | 10.97 million hectares | +1.3% |
| 1973 | 11.06 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1974 | 11.19 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1975 | 11.28 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1976 | 11.36 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1977 | 11.48 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1978 | 11.55 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1979 | 11.64 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 11.74 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1981 | 11.90 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1982 | 12.03 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1983 | 12.25 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 12.32 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 12.41 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 12.56 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1987 | 12.49 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 12.64 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1989 | 12.91 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 1990 | 13.04 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1991 | 13.23 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1992 | 13.10 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 13.33 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1994 | 13.74 million hectares | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 13.84 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 14.11 million hectares | +1.9% |
| 1997 | 14.13 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 14.31 million hectares | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 14.70 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 2000 | 15.12 million hectares | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 15.20 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 15.43 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 15.61 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 15.96 million hectares | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 16.06 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 16.25 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 16.15 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 16.39 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 16.24 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 16.14 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 16.34 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 16.19 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 16.19 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 16.19 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 16.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 16.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2017 | 16.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 16.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 16.18 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 16.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 16.17 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 16.17 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 16.17 million hectares | -0.0% |
Zimbabwe compared with similar countries
- Zimbabwe's 16.17 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 9.40 million hectares, 1.7× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zimbabwe's 16.17 million hectares is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 13.51 million hectares, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 10.30 million hectares | 10.00 million hectares | 10.61 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 11.21 million hectares | 10.71 million hectares | 11.64 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 12.33 million hectares | 11.74 million hectares | 12.91 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.75 million hectares | 13.04 million hectares | 14.70 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 15.84 million hectares | 15.12 million hectares | 16.39 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.19 million hectares | 16.14 million hectares | 16.34 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.17 million hectares | 16.17 million hectares | 16.18 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
More agriculture & rural data for Zimbabwe
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 34.41 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0947 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 286.19 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.8815 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.595 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 9.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 9.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in Zimbabwe?
- Agricultural land use in Zimbabwe was 16.17 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural land use recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 16.39 million hectares in 2008.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.00 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for agricultural land use?
- Zimbabwe ranks 56th out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zimbabwe data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Land used for cultivation of crops and animal husbandry. The total of areas under cropland and permanent meadows and pastures.